Jerry McIntire

Yes, blankets to cover windows when the sun is coming in helps but, just like your door showed, covering/shading window and doors on the outside is best. I stapled painting drop cloths over our east and west windows and doors, the biggest heat gains during summer because the sun is so high overhead it barely shines in the south windows. Permanent awnings that shade those windows would be a big help.

The original poster hasn't responded to any of these suggestions, lots of them good!

I don't think a radiant barrier placed on the inside of the roof will accomplish much. Keeping the heat out of the massive stone walls and roof is the primary goal. Whitewash is a very inexpensive way to start, I just don't know if it will "stick" to the roof tiles. It actually reacts with masonry to chemically bond to the surface, so if it will, it is a durable as well as inexpensive way to increase reflectance. Lime + water and a pinch of salt is all that's needed to make whitewash. We whitewashed our stucco walls in Wisconsin and it did a great job.

That's not enough though. Inside this stone house the ceiling appears to be the gabled roof. I would install a flat ceiling at whatever height, be sure the attic area above it is well vented, and insulate the new ceiling with 30-50cm of loose fill insulation. This is the single biggest improvement that could be made to reduce overheating, and to reduce the winter heating need as well.

If it is possible, insulation on the outside of the west, then the south, then the east walls would be the most productive order in which to proceed for improving interior living conditions. Likely to cost more than the new interior ceiling with insulation above it.

Bryant, this paragraph in the original makes more sense to me if I change the order of the sentences. Also fixed some typos:
There are, for the public, a number of concerns surrounding the use of arborist wood chips as a landscape mulch, due to a lot of either uninformed opinions or misinformation being circulated on the internet as well as pseudo-scientists putting out non-trialed theories.

Thanks for the thorough summary of wood chip info! I love them and transformed our entire front yard with 8-10" of wood chips.

Spring is here! How did your workshop do through the winter? I hope the spring edibles are up in your woods, and your permits are all in place for building that new home. What a beautiful part of Michigan.

This is minor in relation to the success this kickstarter is having: when I looked at the book title (without my glasses) I read it as "Skills to inherit prosperity," and I thought, "That's so appropriate, great title!" Maybe "Skills to inherit prosperity" could describe Mollison's Designer's Manual, because clearly the SKIP book has all of the great marketing it needs!

Another laundry rack idea, this one is made from repurposed, free crib sides or baby gates. Not my idea, but I like it!
http://nwedible.com/wall-moutned-clothes-drying-rack-perfected/

That is a big lot in Portland! We have lived in the Corbett and Westmoreland neighborhoods and are wary of the size Portland has reached, but established gardens with preserved land nearby is attractive as is the ground floor apartment. How close are the nearest farms? What neighborhood do you live in? How many square feet is the house? Do you have a garage or carport? Any solar hot water or PV?

Thanks Dave and Nicole. I will look through the list you've collected Nicole! Facebook I don't do, but the Google search has been helpful.

Can any of you recommend an area/community where permaculture is being seriously practiced in the Pacific Northwest? We have just moved from the east coast, and are deciding where to buy some land and build a home. We'd like to have some permie neighbors! Oregon and Washington preferred, the wet side of the Cascades.